Daily Tech News

Well, it only makes sense ... they’ve come up with an  electronic replacement for the door lock key , so why not the combination padlock, too? That’s what Master Lock has done, with its new dialSpeed lock. Although the retro grouch in some of us may find it a bit overdone, it does offer a couple of useful features. While traditional combination padlocks involve memorizing combinations of exact numbers, the codes used by the dialSpeed are made up of combinations of just four “characters” – an up, down, left and right arrow. These arrows are displayed on the backlit keypad, and are each matched up with a group of letters and numbers. This allows users to memorize codes based on corresponding acronyms (like with the letters on phone keypads), as opposed to having to remember something like “up/up/down/right/up/left.” Each lock comes with its own factory-set code, although this can be reset by the user. Up to three “guest codes” can also be programmed in, so the same lock can be...

Over the last few years, electric cars have become more mainstream with the launch of successful models such as the  Chevy Volt  and the  Nissan Leaf . Now, Danish developer and manufacturer ECOmove hopes to enter the expanding e-car market with its QBEAK model, which is slated to hit the road in 2012. Clearly pitched at urban dwellers, the emissions-free QBEAK weighs approximately 400 kg (881.4 lbs) while its batteries offer a range of up to 300 km (186.4 miles), with a top speed of 120 km (74.6 miles) per hour. Customization is at the core of the concept and the car can be adapted to suit different requirements of the owner. It can feature up to six seats or alternatively the seats can be removed to make room for a more spacious trunk. The number of batteries is also flexible, as they are available in removable modules (up to six can be installed in one car). With a length of three meters (9.8 ft) and sliding side doors, parking should not be a problem for th...

From the  Jetsons  to  Back To The Future , hopping onto or into a personal flying vehicle has been on the engineering "To Do" list for a good many years. We've seen a number of noteworthy attempts at defying gravity and taking to the skies here at Gizmag (many of which are featured in  this roundup  from 2010) and now another possible addition to that growing collection has landed on our desk. Known simply as the Flying Bike (or FBike), this collaborative effort from a bunch of Czech companies and enthusiasts is still very much in the early stages of development, but the proposal is to fit a number of electrically-driven propellers to the custom frame of a two-wheeler that will allow the pilot to rise above the traffic for as long as the batteries hold out. The FBike project began in the autumn of 2011 with a proposal to create an e-bike, but enthusiasts from Czech companies Technodat, Evektor and Duratec set their sights on loftier designs instead. Inspired b...

A UCLA team has developed a new type of solar cell that is nearly 70 percent transparent to the naked eye. The plastic cells, which use infrared instead of visible light, are also more economical than other types of cells because they are made by an inexpensive polymer solution process and nanowire technology, potentially paving the way for cheaper solar windows. Solar panels are great. The only problem is that they take up quite a bit of space. To run a building off of solar panels you’d pretty much have to cover it with them. Since people like things called “windows,” that’s usually not an option. Even running small devices off the sun is a bother since the panels are often bulky, take up areas wanted for other purposes or need to be placed somewhere really inconvenient, like the  back of a phone . If only solar cells were thin films that you could see through, then you could turn windows and tablet displays into solar panels. We’ve looked at the idea of transparent so...